Still in his twenties, Korean American composer Solbong Kim continues to broaden his diverse body of work – from War Requiem(2007), an epic hour-long piece performed by the Prime Philharmonic(Sarah Hicks, Conductor), New Person Chorus, Academy Children’s Choir, and Four Soloists, to Rooftop Fantasy(2008), a piece for solo violin recently commissioned by the 5th Seoul International Music Competition.

Highlights of performances and premieres in 2009 include performance of Concerto for Viola and Orchestra(2004) with violist Sangjin Kim and CheongJu Philharmonic Orchestra at Symphonic Festival in April, followed by the premiere of Sundial Chronicles(2009) as the composer-in-residence at Seoul Spring Festival in May. That month, Godiva Miniatures(2005) will be performed by Koreana Chamber Music Society. In June, his Concerto for Viola and Orchestra will be performed at the 2009 Atlantic Music Festival.

Kim grabbed the spotlight of the industry when media giant Bertelsmann Group (now SONY/BMG) announced that his Music for Orchestra(1998) was the grand-prize winner of 2000 World of Expression Awards while he was still a student at The Juilliard School Pre-College Division. Chosen among 3,000 submissions, his work was dubbed, “a sophisticated piece of music that is a listening adventure.” Billboard Magazine called him “Bertelsmann’s finest.”

The following year, Kim entered the world-renowned Curtis Institute of Music. While at Curtis, he was named the composer-in-residence by the New York Sinfonietta and received the prestigious Presser Music Award in 2005.

Kim made his Korean debut in 2004 with his Credo(2004), a work written for the Euro-Asian Philharmonic and Chorus, generating great enthusiasm from both the audience and the critics. Credo was praised for its freedom and originality as well as its spiritual inspiration and religious poise. The success of the Credo was followed by his orchestral work Illumination(2004), performed by the Korean Symphony Orchestra under the direction of the composer Andrew Thomas and Gotham Loops(2007), performed at the 2007 Symphonic Festival in Seoul. His Piano Quartets From The Sixth Hour and Postcard were performed and recorded by the MIK Ensemble followed by a recording of his orchestral works Gotham Loops, Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra(2007), Ash Tree Song(2003), and Sacred Meadow(2005) for Stomp/EMI Label.
In 2009, Kim is serving as the Artistic Director of Dumbo Space, a world class 200-seat theater and post-production facility currently under construction in New York City as well as the 2009 Atlantic Music Festival, a six-week event to be held in Maine from June 22 to July 31, 2009.

*updated April 2009